Tottenham defender Cristian Romero has been slammed for his performances this season.
The Argentine World Cup winner, who was a key figure in Ange Postecoglou’s successful debut season at Tottenham, has struggled to replicate his form, leaving fans and pundits questioning his defensive sharpness.
Romero’s partnership with Micky van de Ven last season earned widespread acclaim, with many labelling them as one of the Premier League’s top centre-back duos.
Postecoglou even elevated Romero’s role by naming him vice-captain, which initially seemed to enhance his maturity and discipline on the field.
However, this season has seen a noticeable dip in his performances. He has not looked as sharp enough, and has made quite a few mistakes which has either directly or indirectly resulted in goals. In fact, club insider John Wenham has named him responsible for most of the goals Spurs have conceded this season.
One notable error occurred in the recent 3-2 loss to Brighton, where Tottenham squandered a two-goal lead. Romero was caught ball-watching, leaving Brighton’s Danny Welbeck unmarked to score the winning goal.
Former Spurs star Glenn Hoddle was particularly vocal in his criticism, calling Romero’s defending “poor” and accusing him of being a “spectator” during the decisive moment. Hoddle pointed out that Romero’s failure to track Welbeck’s movement and his poor positioning contributed to the goal.
Discussing Romero’s role in the goal on Premier League Productions, Hoddle said:
“This is just poor defending all round, you can’t believe it from a Tottenham point of view. There is one attacker in the six-yard box. It’s 3 vs one.”
“It is poor defending from (Destiny) Udogie. You have got to stand up, he gets too tight and gets turned. I think (Rodrigo) Bentancur has to slide in earlier as well and take that the ball out for a corner.”
“If we just watch this, from an experienced defender, look at Romero here. Eyes on the ball. He’s not looked at (Danny Welbeck). He has actually put himself in a poor position; hasn’t opened his body up once and has actually walked from a good position to get into a bad position. Then he has just ball-watched. He is a spectator. He might as well be in row Z watching from behind the goal. If you defend like that, then you are going to get punished.”
Despite his current form, Romero’s quality is unquestionable. Tottenham fans and Postecoglou will be hoping Romero can quickly turn things around and help solidify the backline, especially as the team looks to push for a top-four finish in the Premier League.